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The  Josephine  M.  Bixby 
Memorial  Hospital 


-FOR— 


WOMEN  AND  CHILDREN 

KITYANG,  CHINA 


WOMAN'S  BAPTIST  FORIEGN  MISSIONARY 
SOCIETY  OF  THE  WEST 
450  E.  30th  Street,  Chicago,  III. 


The  Josephine  M.  Bixby  Memorial  Hospital. 


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The  Josephine  M.  Bixby  Hospital 
FOR  WOMEN  AND  CHILDREN 


In  S^emoriam 


The  Kityang  Hospital  is  the  most  fitting 
memorial  possible  to  her  whose  name  it 
bears.  She  had  planned  to  call  it  “lue 
True  Doctrine  Hospital,”  but  when  the  glad 
day  of  its  dedication  and  her  fruition  proved 
also  to  be  the  closing  day  of  her  labors 
there  and  her  passing  to  her  reward  follow- 
ed so  swiftly,  no  other  name  could  be 
thought  of  than  that  it  bears,  for  she  had 
given  her  life  for  it,  and  it  is  her  memorial. 

Dr.  Bixby  was  an  Iowa  girl.  Converted  at 
sixteen,  she  soon  determined  to  give  her 
life  to  the  foreign  work.  Declining  all  prof- 
fered aid  she  maintained  herself  for  two 
years  in  the  Training  School  for  Nurses, 
two  years  in  the  Woman’s  Medical  College 
and  some  time  in  the  Moody  Institute,  all  in 
Chicago. 

She  sailed  from  San  Francisco  October  16, 
1894,  and  reached  Swatow,  China,  November 
8th.  Here  she  commenced  the  study  of  the 
Chinese  language  and  took  charge  of  some 
patients  in  connection  with  Dr.  Scott.  To- 
gether they  treated  more  than  a thousand 
patients  a week.  Dr.  Bixby  attending  special- 
ly to  the  eye  and  ear  patients.  And  in  a 
little  more  than  a year  she  assumed  charge 
at  Kityang.  Here  amid  privations  and  dif- 


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ficulties,  work  that  demanded  a man's 
strength,  with  none  but  native  assistants, 
whom  she  had  trained,  sometimes  alone  at 
the  station  and  taking  charge  of  other's 
work  during  their  furloughs,  she  wrought 
and  planned  and  hoped  and  accomplished 
for  eleven  years.  Then  came  the  few 
months  of  suffering  and  on  Sabbath  morn- 
ing, June  16th,  1907,  she  passed  over  to  the 
true  “Homeland.” 

A SPLENDID  LOCATION 

A more  advantageous  situation  for  hos- 
pital work  could  hardly  be  found. 

“Kityang,  a large  walled  city,  forty  miles 
inland  from  Swatow,  lies  in  the  midst  of 
innumerable  villages  with  idol-filled  temples, 
heathen  music  and  processions  filling  the 
air  and  streets,  all  telling  of  superstition 
and  idolatry.  In  the  hospital  are  gathered 
daily  crowds  of  lame,  halt  and  blind,  wait- 
ing the  attention  of  the  foreign  doctor. 
Here  are  wee  babies,  strapped  to  the  back 
of  diminutive  brother  or  sister,  with  their 
tiny  heads  bobbing  now  this  way,  now  that; 
women  with  tiny  bound  feet,  wrapped  in  Oh, 
such  filthy  rags,  came  hobbling  in;  men 
with  hands  or  feet  injured;  rheumatic  pa- 
tients, including  even  little  children;  then 
the  eye  patients,  a host  in  themselves.  See 
how  great  the  opportunities,  how  wide  the 
field!”  Dr.  Bixby  writes  the  following: 

"God  has  given  us  a great  opportunity 
and  a great  responsibility  in  the  work  of 
establishing  this  ‘True  Dcctrine  Hospital’  at 


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Kityang,  tae  only  hospital  within  a radius 
of  over  twenty-five  miles,  myself  the  only 
foreign  doctor,  surrounded  by  hundreds  of 
villages,  large  and  small,  of  which  Kityang 
is  the  busy  center  for  trade  and  travel. 
From  the  beginning  we  have  never  had  our 
patients  to  seek;  simply  open  the  doors  and 
they  come  in  droves  with  ailments  great  and 
small,  curable  and  incurable.  We  have 
never  had  to  meet  prejudice  to  any  great 
extent  in  the  matter  of  doing  operations. 
They  often  come  and  beg  to  be  operated 
upon. 

Of  our  patients,  a few  are  Christians,  for 
the  gospel  has  been  preached  in  many  of 
the  villages;  many  have  been  casual  hearers 
only  but  the  greater  number  know  little  or 
nothing  of  the  way  of  eternal  salvation.  Of 
the  in-patients  the  majority  have  always 
been  women.  At  dispensary  we  always 
have  more  men  than  women. 

In  view  of  the  great  opportunities  and 
possibilities  of  the  medical  work  at  Kit 
yang,  one  cannot  but  feel  very  grateful  as 
well  as  very  humble  in  being  called  to  such 
a field.” 


HOW  IT  CAME  TO  BE 

The  hospital  accommodations  were  scon 
outgrown,  making  imperative  for  the  gen- 
eral work,  the  use  of  the  chapel,  which 
had  previously  served  as  a home.  This 
change  involved  great  inconveniences  for 
Dr.  Bixby.  She  herself  took  a room  in  the 
hospital.  This  was  the  only  place  in  which 


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she  might  study,  sleep  and  rest — here  where 
the  odors  of  Chinese  cooking  and  clatter  of 
Chinese  women  and  children  would  always 
be  present,  for  the  most  of  the  women  bring 
their  cnildren  and  do  their  own  cooking 
while  at  the  hospital. 

“Accordingly,  she  set  herself  valiantly  to 
overcome  these  difficulties,  by  years  of  pa- 
tient and  persistent  appeals,  first  for  hos- 
pital enlargement,  then  for  a new  Woman’s 
Hospital.  She  spent  much  time  and 
strength  while  in  the  home-land  soliciting 
funds.  Baffled  by  no  discouragements,  she 
presented  the  claims  of  that  rapidly  devel- 
oping work  until  she  won.”  The  money 
came  from  friends  at  home;  missionaries 
on  the  field;  $2,000  from  the  Chinese  them- 
selves; from  Chapels,  from  business  men 
in  Swatow  and  Kityang;  $235  in  material 
and  work  from  the  splendid  little  Chinese 
contractor,  Christian  and  heathen  alike,  who 
had  learned  the  value  of  the  hospital,  and 
caught  the  spirit  it  embodied;  but  it  was  the 
generous  gift  of  $5,000  from  a noble-hearted 
Minnesota  woman  which  made  Dr.  Bixby’s 
dream  a realization. 

A PEN  PICTURE 

The  picture  is  from  Dr.  Bixby’s  own  pen. 
“The  hospital  is  indeed  beautiful,  and  wins 
the  admiration  of  all.  The  foundations  and 
walls  are  of  pounded  cement.  The  outside 
of  the  walls  has  a finishing  coat  of  smooth 
plaster,  of  a soft  gray  tint,  which  will  be  a 
lasting  protection  against  the  dampness  of 


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this  climate,  and  will  not  show  mildew. 
The  woodwork,  shutters,  railings,  etc.,  are 
painted  dark  red.  The  floors  of  the  first 
floor  are  of  red  tile,  save  the  operating 
room  and  bath  rooms,  which  are  of  Port- 
land cement.  The  building  is  in  three  sec- 
tions, which  surround  a court  opening  to 
the  east.  This  court  is  thirty-seven  feet 
wide  and  sixty  feet  deep,  and  will  be  sodded 
and  used  for  recreation  space.  On  the 
second  floor  are  large  verandas  into  which 
all  the  wards  and  rooms  on  that  floor  open; 
these  are  delightful  fresh  air  spaces,  and 
will  be  our  tuberculosis  cure.  From  this 
broad  roof-covered  space  a charming  view 
of  the  surrounding  country  and  the  river 
can  be  had.  There  are  three  large,  well 
ventilated  wards,  besides  smaller , ones',  and 
six  private  rooms,  besides  the  rooms  for  the 
helpers.  There  are  two  operating  rooms, 
one  on  the  ground  floor  for  ordinary  dis- 
pensary work,  and  one  just  above  it  which 
is  to  be  finished  all  in  white  and  reserved 
for  aseptic  work  only.  We  have  the  very 
best  drains  about  the  building  that  have  yet 
been  made  in  this  part  of  the  country.  The 
building  will  accommodate  seventy-five  pa- 
tients.” 


THE  DEDICATION 

We  quote  from  one  of  our  missionaries. 
Rev.  A.  P.  Groesbeck,  Chowyang,  China. 

“One  of  the  happy  events  in  the  history 
of  the  South  China  Mission  was  the  recent 
opening  of  the  Woman’s  Hospital,  Kityang. 


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It  was  one  of  those  days  when  the  sun 
comes  out  in  all  his  glory  to  give  good 
speed  to  some  Christian  function  planned 
for  a month  beforehand.  So  from  the 
heathen  point  of  view  the  Lord  was  on  our 
side  that  day.  When  we  arrived  we  found 
hundreds  of  the  natives  there,  Christian  and 
heathen,  village  peasant  and  city  official, 
shoulder  to  shoulder,  listening  to  the  ex- 
ercises. The  crowd  of  foreigners  was  not 
so  large  as  that  of  the  natives,  but  was 
quite  as  much  a jumble.  Men  and  women 
were  there,  Presbyterians  and  Baptists,  En- 
glish and  American,  doctor,  teacher  and 
evangelist.  The  Swatow  business  com- 
munity was  represented  by  Mr.  Richardson, 
of  the  firm  of  Bradley  & Co.  Mr.  Richard- 
son is  one  of  the  oldest  residents,  the  friend 
of  all  good  works,  a large  donor  to  the  hos- 
pital fund.  The  program  was  in  charge  of 
Mr.  Speicher,  the  addresses  were  all  in 
Chinese,  or  put  into  that  tongue.  A history 
of  the  old  hospital  was  given,  the  purposes 
and  ideals  of  the  new  were  set  forth. 
Words  of  greeting  and  God-speed  were 
spoken  by  visitors,  and  after  an  addi’ess  by 
Dr.  Bixby,  the  keys  were  handed  over  by  the 
contractor  and  the  hospital  was  formally 
declared  open. 

“Long  shall  we  remember  her  radiant  joy, 
her  complete  happiness  when  after  her 
splendid  address  the  keys  were  given  into 
her  charge.” 

“After  the  exercises  Dr.  Bixby  led  the 
visitors  through  the  building  explaining  its 


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arrangement  and  uses.  The  officials  and 
gentry  were  taken  in  charge  by  Mr. 
Speicher,  while  the  crowd  of  natives  fol- 
lowed or  wandered  at  will  to  wonder  and 
admire.  Evidently  to  the  smallest  detail 
the  plan  had  been  thought  out,  and  we  were 
beholding  how  well  it  had  been  wrough 
out  in  the  building.  Perhaps  the  encomium 
pronounced  on  the  builder  by  Dr.  Bixby 
was  warranted,  but  most  of  us  would  pre- 
fer to  praise  the  forethought  and  vigilance 
of  the  presiding  genius.  Dr.  Bixby,  that 
somehow  compelled  him  to  build  better 
than  his  contract. 

After  the  feast  of  eye  and  reason  came 
that  other  feast  without  which  no  enterprise 
of  importance  is  ever  launched  in  China. 
The  mandarins  and  other  stars  had  a room 
and  a banquet  to  themselves.  The  con- 
tributors and  everybody  else  seemed  some 
how  to  find  something  to  eat.  Certainly  all 
were  crowded,  noisy  and  happy.  The  for- 
eigners were  served  tiffen,  at  the  home  of 
Dr.  Bixby  and  Miss  Ross.  The  steam  launch 
blew  its  whistle  for  the  third  and  last 
time,  and  we  did  not  miss  it,  for  it  had 
waited  an  hour  for  us  in  honor  of  the  oc- 
casion.” 


. A DAY'S  WORK 

Let  us  follow  Dr.  Bixby  through  one  day’s 
work,  typical  of  hospital  work  in  all  our 
stations. 

“At  half  past  eight  to  nine  o'clock  every 
morning  we  have  a singing  and  preaching 


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service,  at  the  chapel.  This  is  under  Mr. 
Speicher’s  direction,  and  native  preachers. 
At  nine  o’clock  I repair  to  the  hospital,  and, 
if  it  is  not  ‘dispensary  day,’  spend  the  morn- 
ing with  my  native  helpers,  looking  after  our 
in-patients.  If  it  is  dispensary  day,  my  two 
boys  attend  to  the  dressing  and  treating  of 
eyes,  before  nine  o’clock,  and  at  nine  the 
door  is  opened  and  tickets  are  given  out  as 
the  people  come  in,  and  we  dispense  medi- 
cines, and  treat  eyes,  and  all  sorts  of  mal- 
adies until  noon. 


Dr.  Bixby  at  work. 


“The  religious  service  for  the  in-patients 
is  held  in  the  evening,  when  all  who  are 
able  to  do  so  are  gathered  in  the  waiting 
room,  and  after  a song  is  sung,  a portion  of 


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the  Gospel  is  read  and  explained  by  one  of 
the  helpers,  then  a prayer  is  offered,  and 
it  is  no  uncommon  thing  for  several  to  rise 
before  the  prayer  is  offered,  and  unsolicited, 
request  that  prayer  be  made  for  them.  The 
dispensary  also  is  always  opened  with  a 
short  service. 

“We  often  find  their  ignorance  exceed- 
ingly dense  and  to  make  even  a slight  im- 
pression upon  them  a most  discouraging 
task,  yet  the  work  is  not  hopeless  for  many 
have  learned  while  in  the  hospital  to  read 
a few  hymns  or  tracts,  and  have  learned  to 
pray,  and  have  taken  home  with  them  some 
seed  truths,  which,  being  divine,  we  know 
cannot  die.” 

Mrs.  Giffen,  of  China,  thus  writes  of  her 
visit  to  the  hospital: 

“No  day  since  my  arrival  in  China  has 
been  more  full  of  interest  than  one  spent 
with  Dr.  Bixby  in  the  hospital  at  Kityang. 

“We  went  to  the  hospital  for  the  chapel 
exercises  conducted  by  the  Chinese  as- 
sistant at  nine  o'clock.  The  women  were 
in  the  waiting  rooms  opening  into  the  con- 
sulting room  where  the  speaker  stood  and 
where  we  sat. 

“A  peculiar  audience  indeed!  A little 
woman  with  tiny  bound  feet  encased  in 
embroidered  pink  slippers,  sat  upon  the 
front  bench,  swinging  the  feet  that  could 
not  reach  the  floor.  She  had  a bright  face, 
but  had  come  to  be  treated  for  eye  trouble. 


13 


“Oh,  the  number  of  different  ailments 
that  appeared  during  the  consulting  hours 
which  followed.  Most  prevalent  of  all 
seemed  the  eye  cases.  Then  there  were 
wounds  of  all  kinds  to  be  dressed,  and 
medicines  to  be  given  out. 

“Oh,  the  gratitude  of  those  physically 
blind  who  are  made  to  see,  and  many  who 
are  enabled  to  see  with  the  physical  eyes 
are  taught  to  see  with  the  spiritual  eyes 
as  well.” 

Mrs.  Spiecher  adds,  speaking  of  Dr. 
Bixby:  “Nowhere  could  there  be  found  a 
Christian  worker  more  devoted  to  duty. 
Again  and  again,  after  a weary  day  in  the 
hospital,  would  she  travel  hours  by  native 
chair  or  boat,  to  give  relief  to  some  suffer- 
ing body.” 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS 


Our  hospital  is  in  temporary  charge  of 
Dr.  Adkins  of  the  South  China  Mission, 
while  we  wait  for  the  competent  and  con- 
secrated woman  who  shall  take  the  place 
of  our  loved  Dr.  Bixby.  We  greatly  rejoice 
that  a trained  nurse  has  gone  this  fall  to 
take  up  the  work.  Miss  Luciele  Alice 
Withers,  of  Danville,  111. 

“She  is  a well  equipped  nurse,  being 
graduated  from  the  Training  School  for 
Nurses,  and  hospital  at  Danville,  111.,  also 
from  Bellevue  hospital,  New  York. 


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“She  heard  the  call  to  do  her  part  of 
the  world’s  work  when  a child;  this  has 
grown  with  the  years  and  now  there  is 
great  joy  in  her  heart  that  the  Master  has 


Miss  Withers. 


chosen  her  for  this  special  service.  She 
longs  to  cure  souls  as  well  as  bodies.’’’ 

She  will  be  supported  by  the  love  and 
prayers  and  gifts  of  Minnesota  young 
women. 


AN  APPEAL 

For  two  years  Kityang  has  been  calling 
for  a physician,  but  neitner  much  prayer 


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nor  diligent  search  has  revealed  the  right 
woman  to  fill  this  place.  Would  that  I 
could  so  picture  the  suffering  and  sorrow 
and  sin  and  despair  of  our  Chinese  sisters, 
or  that  I could  so  illuminate  the  joy  of  ser- 
vice that  some  consecrated  young  women, 
strong  of  body,  sensible  in  mind,  cheery  in 
disposition,  well  equipped  with  the  knowl- 
edge and  training  of  the  medical  profession, 
would  be  willing  to  take  for  her  renown  the 
gratitude  of  China’s  suffering  daughters,  and 
for  her  guerdon  “bright  jewels”  for  her 
crown,  and  would  speedily  say,  “Here  am  I, 
Lord,  send  me!” 


KATHERINE  K.  GALE. 


Minneapolis,  Minn.,  October,  1909. 


, .'v-  V';V- ^ .Si..-.  . ■ . • ...•■4Lc '-.-rv-i.  . 

■ ■'“i  V ' . . ■ V vv  ■' -- - 


